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New Mexico Man Pleads Guilty to Murdering Tribal Police Officer
Kirby Cleveland, a 35-year-old enrolled member of the Navajo Nation from Prewitt, New Mexico, has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the 2017 killing of Houston James Largo, a tribal police officer.
Cleveland’s guilty plea was entered in federal court yesterday to an information charging him with killing Largo, with malice aforethought, in McKinley County, New Mexico, on March 11, 2017.
According to public court records, Cleveland’s common law wife called the police after he became drunk and angry at home with their children. Officer Largo responded to the call, and Cleveland shot him in the head with a rifle. Cleveland then fled the scene, but was later found hiding under a rock about 1.5 miles away.
Cleveland faces up to life in prison for second-degree murder and is currently in custody awaiting sentencing, scheduled for March 20, 2020.
In addition to the murder charge, Cleveland also pleaded guilty to violating the terms of his supervised release from a previous assault conviction. He had been ordered to abstain from alcohol and complete a residential reentry program, but failed to do so.
Cleveland faces up to two years in prison for violating his supervised release. The case was investigated by the Gallup and Albuquerque offices of the FBI, the Crownpoint, Shiprock and Chinle offices of the Navajo Nation Department of Public Safety, and other law enforcement agencies.
Key Facts
- State: New Mexico
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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